Yes, it’s that time again, the weekend, and time to review the best new movies and television shows added online this week, to Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime. And there are some exciting new adds this week, so let’s get started.
HULU
Yes, as you might have heard, Hulu has finally added Poor Things, the 2023 Oscar-nominated Fantasy drama from Yorgos Lanthimos(The Favorite). This tells the tale of Bella Baxter, played by Emma Stone(!), who was brought back to life by the very unorthodox Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe!), who has (obviously) worked on himself, too. But his work on Bella is not done, as she has much to learn about life and society, and especially, social norms. So, she lives shuttered with the doctor in his London home, with his maid and other experiments, until she meets, and slaps, Max McCandless (Ramy Youssef),Godwin’s assistant. From there, Bella is swept up into the high life of Victorian society, and meets the predatory Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo). But, Bella may have more surprises up her sleeve for Wedederburn than he thinks. Jerrod Carmichael, Hanna Schygulla and Kathryn Hunter also star, and Lanthimos co-wrote the script here, along with directing. And this movie, a marvelous retelling of the Frankenstein tale, has been nominated for countless awards already, and won many, including the Golden Lion and the UNIMED Award at the 2023 Venice Film Festival. And it has gotten 11 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, and a well-deserved Best Actress nomination for Stone, with Stone already having won Best Actress at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, London Critics Circle Film Awards and the 2024 Golden Globes. And it gets an incredible 92% on Rotten Tomatoes, and an 8.2/10 on IMDb. Michael Calleri of the Niagara Gazette wrote it “is not only an expressive meal for the mind, it’s also one of the most spectacularly beautiful and visually imaginative films I’ve seen.” And I agree, I’m definitely tuning in. Hulu has also added The Marsh King’s Daughter, the 2023 thriller starring Daisy Ridley. Based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Karen Dionne, this tells the tale of Helena Pelletier(Ridley), a young woman whose seemingly normal rural life is upended when her father, Jacob (Ben Mendelsohn), escapes a prison van. The thought of his return to her life fills her with dread, for he was the ‘Marsh King,‘ who held Helena and her mother prisoner in the wilds for years. And before she allows him to hurt her new family, including her young daughter, Helena will use all the survivalist skills her father taught her, to stop him. Garrett Hedlund, Brooklynn Prince, Caren Pistorius and Joey Carson also star, and Neil Burger directed. But this movie, despite it great cast, doesn’t pan out, and so gets only a 41% on Rotten Tomatoes. Nell Minow of RogerEbert.com wrote “the film’s pacing sags, undercutting the sense of urgency that makes a thriller.” And I’m not watching. Hulu also offers Woori, the Virgin, a 2022 K-drama romcom series. Im Soo Hyang stars as Woori, a writer on a tv series, who has vowed to remain chaste until marriage, dating the devoted police officer Lee Kang Jae (Shin Dong Wook). But she unexpectedly becomes pregnant with a child of Raphael (Sung Hoon), after her doctor’s accidentally artificially inseminates her. Now, Woori has to juggle single motherhood with propriety , rumors and dating, too. Nam Mi-jung, Sung-hoon, Shin Dong-wook and Hong Ji-yoon also star, and there are 14 episodes available for viewing now. Yes it’s a remake of Jane the Virgin, but it was nominated for 5 SBS awards and Nam Mi-jung won the Scene Stealer Award there. And this series an outstanding 7.7/10 on Viki, and Pierce Conran of the South China Morning Post says its a “bubbly romcom starring Lim Soo-hyang [that] recovers for a romantic photo finish”And, finally, Hulu has Jinxed at First, a 2022 K-drama romantic series. Gong Soo Gwang (Na in-woo), a fishmonger who has the unfortunate reputation of being the unluckiest man in town. And its all because of his former love, Seul-bi (Seohyun), a shaman who could see the future, and every time he dreams of her, he has some outrageous spell of bad luck. The question, can Su-gwang escape his curse, and maybe even get Seul-bi in his life again? Jun Kwang-ryul, Ki Do-hoon, Cha Kwang-soo, Ki Do-hoon and Yoon Ji-hye also star, and there are 16 episodes available to enjoy now. and this series gets an outstanding 9.1/10 on Viki and Rian Daly of NME calls it “an enchanting, unique take on fate and fairytales.” So I’m watching
NETFLIX
The biggest title added on Netflix this week is probably The Gentlemen, the 2024 action series from Guy Ritchie. This tells of Eddie Horniman (Theo James), who unexpectedly inherits a weed empire from his father– a business he wants to avoid. Though his brother,(Daniel Ings), is deeply in debt to drug dealers. Eddie wants only to extricate himself from the criminal world he’s inherited. But while he’s in the biz, he gets help from Susie Glass(Kaya Scodelario). Matthew McConnaughey, Charlie Hunnam, Hugh Grant, Colin Farrell, Jeremy Strong and Henry Golding also star, and there are 8 episodes available now for streaming. but we’ve all seen this before, and better, from Guy Ritchie. so even though it gets a 75% on Rotten Tomatoes, I agree with David Sims of the Atlantic who says “for all its energy and vulgarity, The Gentlemen is a slog, a tedious and unnecessarily unpleasant tour of ground that Ritchie‘s already covered.” And I’m definitely not watching. But Netflix has another star vehicle this week, with Damsel, the 2024 dark fantasy starring Millie Bobby Brown(!). Brown stars Elodie, pressured by her stepmother Lady Bayford(Angela Bassett!), to marry Prince Henry(Nick Robinson), a seemingly promising match. But Elodie finds herself sacrificed by her husband soon after their marriage, throw into a dragon’s lair by Henry, as part of his family’s hereditary obligations. Elodie is able to save herself , and survive the dragon’s underground cavern. but as soon as Henry’s mother, Queen Isabelle of Aurea(Robin Wright!), learns of Elodie’s survival, the queen kidnaps her younger sister, Floria, to sacrifice instead. Ray Winstone, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Milo Twomey, Nicole Joseph and Brooke Carter also star, while Juan Carlos Fresnadillo directs. And this movie gets a 59% on Rotten Tomatoes, and Nell Minnow of RogerEbert.com says “even on the smaller screen, though, the fresh, female-led take on the traditional tale, including a bit of a sisterhood-is-powerful twist near the end, makes it worth a watch.” And I agree, so I’m watching. Netflix has also added The Signal, a 2024 German sci-fi mystery limited series. Here, astronaut Paula (Peri Baumeister) leaves her young daughter, Charlie, and husband, to go to the International Space Station. But when she discovers a mysterious signal there, and then disappears, accusations against Paula rise, and it’s left to her family to save her, and her name. Yuna Bennett, Sheeba Chaddha and Katharina Schüttler also star, and there are 4 episodes available for streaming now. And though it gets a mere 5.7/10 on IMDb, the Times Now calls it a “thought provoking journey into the unknown.” And I agree, so I’m tuning in. Netflix has another gem added with Four Daughters, an award-winning 2024 Tunisian documentary. In this hybridized documentary, the real Olfa Hamrouomi, a Tunisian woman, has had 2 of her 4 daughters disappear into radical Islam. So the award-winning director Kaouther Ben Hania has a dramatic cast made up, and they reenact the important events of the family’s lives, based on the interviews with the family members that begin the movie. Olfa‘s two remaining real daughters play themselves while actress Hend Sabry plays Olfa in the more difficult scenes. Then everyone, family and cast, review what the scenes. Eya Chikhaoui, Tayssir Chikhaoui, Nour Karoui and Ickrak Matar also star, and Ben Hania wrote the script, along with directing. And this movie has won many awards this season, including Best Documentary at the 2023 Gotham Awards, and at the César Awards and Best Documentary- the Golden Eye– at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. And it is nominated in this Sunday’s Academy Awards for Best Documentary Feature. And it gets a stunning 96% on Rotten Tomatoes, and Lovia Gyarkye of the Hollywood Reporter called it “an enthralling narrative about memory, motherhood and the inherited traumas of a patriarchal society.” and i agree, I’m watchin, before tomorrow’s Academy Awards. And, finally, Netflix has added 12th Fail, a 2023 Hindi language drama. Based on Anurag Pathak‘s novel of the same name, this chronicles the true story of Manoj Kumar Sharma, played by Vikrant Massey, a young man from the small town of Chambal, who tries, repeatedly, to pass the notoriously hard UPSC exam in Delhi. On his 12th try, he and his whole class try cheating, making up cheat sheets to pass, but are thwarted by the last things they expect, an honest cop (Priyanshu Chatterjee), who flunks the whole class. Manoj is awestruck, and makes up his mind to pass and become a police officer, like his hero. Vikas Divyakirti, Anshuman Pushkar, Anantvijay Joshi, Medha Shankar and Sarita Joshi also star, and Vidhu Vinod Chopra directs. And this movie has won multiple awards in India, including 5 Filmfare awards, in Mumbai, including Best Actor for Massey, Best Director for Chopra, and Best Film. And it gets an amazing 9.1/10 on IMDb, and a 91% on Rotten Tomatoes. And Tatsam Mukherjee of The Wire says it “has a stellar ‘feel’ for authenticity….Chopra never compromises the idealism in his story for an easier, cheaper way. 12th Fail is proof that crowd-pleasing films can find a way to be so, without losing sight of their integrity.” And I’m watching.
AMAZON
Amazon has added their big in-house title Ricky Stanicky , a 2024 comedy from Peter Farrelly. Here, three childhood friends, Dean (Zac Efron), JT (Andrew Santino), and Wes (Jermaine Fowler), have always used their fake friend Ricky Stanicky, to get out of tight spots, or anything they didn’t want to do, like weddings or family affairs. So suddenly, when it appears they’ve been found out by their wives and family, they hire the alcoholic celebrity impersonator “Rock Hard” Rod (John Cena). But as Rod is just going clean as they head home, and that’s only the beginning of their problems. And hilarity ensues. William H. Macy(!), Lex Scott Davis,Anja Savcic and Jeff Ross also star, and Peter Farrelly directed(without his brother, Robert) But this is a lame, painful comedy, and its definitely been seen before. And so it gets a surprisingly high 47% on Rotten Tomatoes, but Barry Levitt of Empire mag calls it “a comedy that delivers nothing but tedium, wasting a clever idea by repeating the same jokes over and over.” And I’m definitely not watching. But Amazon also has Marlowe, the 2023 noir mystery. This takes place in 1930’s L. A., with Philip Marlowe, played by Liam Neeson(!), asked to investigate a disappearance by the rich Clare Cavendish(Diane Kruger). Cavendish wants him to find her lover, Nico Petersen (François Arnaud), who was ostensibly a prop manager, but really appears to have been a drug dealer. As Clare’s mom, Dorothy (Jessica Lange), an ex-actress, tries to hire(and romance) Marlowe, and the police say Nico was murdered, things heat up, bullets fly and gangsters trying to blow Marlowe(and others) away. But can he escape alive? Alan Cumming(!),Ian Hart, Daniela Melchior and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje also star, and Neil Jordan directed. But this is not a Raymond Chandler story, it is instead based on The Black-Eyed Blonde by Benjamin Black, and so it’s story lacking the magical Chandler touch. And it gets a mere 26% on Rotten Tomatoes, but a 5.3/10 on IMDb. And Stephanie Bunbury of Deadline Hollywood wrote, “it’s fun and it’s fast: Information and wisecracks are packed into every minute of every scene to the point of giddiness. Casting is inspired across the board,” and I love a mystery, so I’m watching. And, finally, Amazon has season 1 of The Diplomat, a 2023 mystery/drama series. And, no, this isn’t the Netflix series with Keri Russell, but rather a tale of intrigue which follows Laura Simmonds(Sophie Rundle of Peaky Blinders!), a British national who works at the British Consulate in Barcelona. There, she and her colleagues, Alba (Serena Manteghi) and Carl (Dylan Brady) , help distressed British citizens hoping for assistance they can’t find in local authorities. Like the father whose son, a British citizen, died, but while the Spanish police won’t investigate, Simmonds and her associates will. And what they find is linked to the Spanish mafia. Steven Cree, Isak Férriz, Philipp Boos and also star, and there are 6 absorbing episodes available for bingeing now. And a vacation to sunny Spain may just be in order, since this series gets a 6.8/10 on IMDb, and James Hibbs of the Radio Times says “the settings are glorious and will leave you wanting more, and the activities and puzzles are just engaging enough.” So I’m definitely tuning in.
So sit back and binge this weekend, on classics, old and new, on Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime. Enjoy!
Grownups Guide to Streaming 